Reviews

The Red House Mystery by A.A. Milne

hlford22's review against another edition

lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

omnomicons's review against another edition

4.0

Despite their almost guarantee of offensive language, there’s something quite adorable and cozy about this specific style of British whodunnit. They’re sort of in line with Agatha Christie’s style, and the grittiness of American contemporary mysteries is thankfully nowhere to be found. The British equivalents lean into their campiness in a way that can’t possibly be self-aware, but delights nonetheless. The Red House Mystery was a perfect short murder mystery with just enough ridiculousness to be lighthearted but not utterly unbelievable. Great job from the author of Winnie the Pooh!

bookworm_nica's review against another edition

3.0

I liked this book, I couldn’t love it simply because the writing style is a little unfamiliar to me and sometimes have a hard time getting into English stories written so long ago.

However, the character are delightful, the investigation is so very much interesting and the plot twist is certainly unexpected. At least I have never read a book with this plot being executed and it took me by surprise.

Antony and Bill make an excellent investigation team.

Totally worth the reading!

kerrianne10's review against another edition

challenging mysterious relaxing slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.25

fionarita's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

bluejay21's review against another edition

lighthearted mysterious relaxing fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

trin's review against another edition

3.0

A.A. "Winnie the Pooh" Milne only ever wrote this one mystery novel. Odd: after a rough start -- write from the POV of the help you should not, sir -- it is charming, if not particularly complex. Even though neither is particularly richly characterized, I liked the vaguely Woostery pals at the story's center. Tony is the affable amateur detective with the eidetic memory -- Cam Jansen would surely have been Milne's next children's venture -- and he's backed up by his bud Bill, who's very happy to go about "Watsoning" for him. Their friendship is without tension and quite cute. Overall the book is a moderately clever locked room mystery, and a quick and pleasant read.

But really, what's most interesting is imagining the alternate universe in which Milne continued with these characters and actually developed them into something.

knittingchaos's review against another edition

4.0

A delightfully light little mystery!

drstephm's review against another edition

mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Diverse cast of characters? No

3.5

barmyjen's review

adventurous challenging mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

 An interesting locked door mystery, with obvious nods to Sherlock Holmes and vibes of Poirot and Miss Marple. The narrators voice suits the age and style of the story, but isn't very clear, so I really had to concentrate to clearly understand the tale, which did detract a little from it.